Azerbaijan opens negligence case over downed Russian helicopter

Baku earlier admitted that the Azerbaijani military shot down the helicopter by mistake and announced its readiness to pay compensation. The Armenian side also opened a criminal case

The Prosecutor General’s Office of Azerbaijan opened a criminal case after the military shot down a Russian Mi-24 helicopter. This was reported on the website of the department.

The case was opened under Art. 342.2 (negligence in service, resulting in the death of two or more people through negligence, which took place in wartime and in combat conditions). It provides for punishment in the form of imprisonment for a term of three to seven years.

Prosecutors and military experts examined the rocket launcher, questioned the servicemen of the military unit where the missile was launched, seized the necessary documents and “carried out other necessary investigative actions.” The department identifies the perpetrators of the incident.

Prosecutor General of Azerbaijan Kamran Aliyev called his Russian counterpart Igor Krasnov, expressed condolences over the death of the crew members and promised that Baku would conduct a “full, objective and thorough investigation.”

The Russian Mi-24 was shot down from a portable anti-aircraft missile system near the Armenian settlement of Yeraskh near the border with Azerbaijan. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, at that time he was escorting a convoy of 102 Russian military base. As a result, two crew members died, one was injured. The official representative of the department, Igor Konashenkov, said that it happened outside the combat zone for Nagorno-Karabakh.

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry stated that the Mi-24 helicopter was shot down by the Azerbaijani military by mistake. The department apologized, expressed condolences to the families of the victims and announced its readiness to pay compensation. According to the Azerbaijani side, the helicopter flew in the dark in the immediate vicinity of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and that no Russian military vessels had been seen in this area before.

In the evening of November 9, Armenia opened a criminal case under pp. 1, 6, 13 Art. 104 h. 2 art. 384 of the Criminal Code of Armenia (murder and unleashing or conducting an aggressive war). The press secretary of the country’s Defense Ministry Shushan Stepanyan said that Yerevan is ready to help Moscow in investigating all the circumstances of the tragedy.

Сообщение Azerbaijan opens negligence case over downed Russian helicopter появились сначала на supercar.ru.